Dream telepathy suggests that human beings have the ability to communicate telepathically with another person while they are dreaming. This isn't a new concept, scientific interest in telepathy dates back to the fathers of the psychoanalytic movement. Freud, for example, considered telepathy and the implications of it with regards to psychoanalytic thought. He also considered dream telepathy, or the telepathic influence of thought on dreaming on multiple occasions. Carl Jung believed in the telepathic hypothesis without question, and even developed a theoretical system to explain “paranormal” events of this nature.

All great minds seem to encourage the study of various types of non-physical phenomena:- Read more

The tale of the new pair of shoes or what happens when we make space for change in our lives

A mother took her young son out to buy him a new pair of shoes to replace his old comfortable worn out pair.

Once upon a time his old worn out shoes were lovely but now they were just getting so worn and falling apart and could no longer be repaired and so it was time to change.

He was taken to the shops and for the very first time was allowed to choose his very own new shoes! He was so excited! He tried them on for size, walking up and down the shop and despite the fact that they were new, stiff and uncomfortable and hadn't yet worn in and become supple, moulding to his feet, his excitement at having a new pair of shoes, the desire for change, of having something better was stronger than all those other little niggles put together....

Well at first it was but when he has to wear those new shoes everyday he finds all those little niggles that funnily enough he didn't once notice at the time of choosing them because he was thinking about those new shoes in a different way. That's right, he just didn't notice because they were what he wanted and he was focussing on the moment of now, the thrill and excitement and that they were shiny and new and how grown up he felt being allowed to choose for himself.

As he wore those new shoes daily though, he noticed how uncomfortable they felt even though he hadn't noticed that at first and the more he dwelt upon the discomfort the more uncomfortable he felt. In fact it made it so difficult to think about anything else and school work started to suffer because all he could think about was how uncomfortable his shoes were and how his feet hurt....

He even started to think about how much he missed his old shoes and how much better they were even though they were old and worn out. He was feeling resentful about the change. Yes,these new shoes were so much more uncomfortable and they were ruining his daily life as he had to go everywhere in them.

You see,the old ones were so worn out and they were now in the bin and his mum just didn't have enough money to buy more than just the one pair. So the little boy cried and moaned all the time about how bad these new shoes were. The little boys mother understandably vexed at her sons apparent ingratitude asked him to tell her just why he was making such a big fuss over what seemed such a small thing. As grown ups we have such a lot on our minds to deal with that sometimes we forget what it was once like to be small where the little things seem so big. To his young mind without so many things in it, it was a big deal. He complained how he hated these new shoes,how they hurt his feet all the time and how that made it difficult to do anything much because his feet were so sore and the shoes so uncomfortable, that the old ones were better and why did you have to make me have a new pair of shoes mum?

His mum, patient, loving and wise,listened and gently reminded him of how he loved the shoes when he first tried them on and how he didn't even notice anything. The little boy stopped and thought about this and said yes mum your right but why do they feel so uncomfortable now? His mum patiently explained why he didn't notice because of all of the excitement of choosing the new shoes and feeling grown up. She then went on to explain that everything was new and that the shoes were still stiff and hadn't moulded and adapted and softened to the boys feet and walking style and that within a little while as he got used to wearing them that he would soon not even think about them as they blended in with everything in his everyday life. Understanding this and accepting the words of motherly wisdom imparted to him the little boy said sorry to his mum for making all that big fuss and told her how grateful he was for his new shoes and very soon as his mum had said those shoes became a little more comfortable everyday.....

Life is a bit like that too,sometimes we desire change because something isn't the way we want it to be in our lives and we make that change. As the impact of that change is integrated into our life things tend to change as we think, behave and react differently to how we once did before. New challenges sometimes come to the surface which demand our attention and challenge our views on life and how we deal with it.

These challenges can come from anywhere but perhaps typically they may come from our relationships with the people around us in our daily lives as they notice how we are different. Sometimes if some people do not find how we are different, easy for them, that may give rise to a new dynamic in your relationships which may create some change. Some of that change may leave you feeling good and some of the changes may mean the breaking down of old ways of relating and perhaps even in time a parting of ways. Sometimes when things are not working, it is more damaging to keep the status quo and just as a boil needs to lanced for the infection to clear the body so change is the only way forward for a person to grow to reach their full potential.

Sometimes when change is made and challenges come at us that we are not quite ready for we can become resentful of those changes and look to the past but looking to the past doesn't often serve our best interests particularly if in breaking free of old limiting behaviours and thinking and perhaps too breaking away from damaging relationships, business or personal, we have experienced positive change and growth. What we need is the patience and understanding to integrate those new changes into our lives and realise that like a chrysalis we are transforming. In fact in hypnotherapy the chrysalis is symbolic of transformation and growth. Just like the new pair of shoes our changes will soon become part of the normal pattern of our lives. The control we have in understand ing the power of hypnosis to make paradigm shifts of change and growth in our lives can take us to wherever we want to go in life. All we need is to work at the things we want and become focussed and patient.

Some very disturbing news on BBC's breakfast TV news this morning to hear how a watchdog investigation has uncovered evidence that increasing numbers of teenagers are turning to taking laxatives to lose weight. It is reported that some are taking dozens a day and seriously risking damaging their health.

The charity 'Beat' the eating disorders charity have been monitoring numbers and reports that 80%of people with anorexia or bulimia have been taking them and many of them are children. According to beat the eating disorders charity there are real and dangerous serious risks to the overuse of laxatives

As there are different types of laxatives and they work in different ways the ways that they can impact the body vary.

Laxatives abuse can give rise to organ failure,kidney and liver damage,blockages in the intestines which means a defunct colon causing long term health problems. Laxatives abuse can even cause heart failure.

This is an increasing and worrying trend fuelled by the many pro anorexia internet sites that offer dangerous tips about how to lose weight rapidly.

From a former laxatives addict Lottie who appeared on the show this morning Lottie talks about the ease of buying so many tablets from the age of twelve without being questioned and also about the addictive nature of the rush of the effects of being trapped in that cycle of addiction of wanting to keep using them and also all the horrible side effects such as feeling miserable,anxious and irritable with painful stomach cramps.

Lottie goes on to say how she now still has a sluggish bowel and gets stomach aches and feels that the addiction has really damaged her.

As a parent with a teenage child the fact that there sites exist really worry me. I believe these sites are really dangerous and I think some form of urgent action needs to be taken to have them blocked or closed down.

Clearly there is a very big problem with a threefold increase in recent years of calls to the charities help line.

Parents, if you notice that your child is suddenly losing weight rapidly and showing any or some of the signs outlined above, sit them down and have a talk with them and find out what is happening as there may well be a problem your child is trying to cope with and of course hiding from you.

You may notice changes in the behaviour and routines , for example are they going to the loo much more frequently? Perhaps something in a busy schedule which may not be noticed.

As this post deals with weight issues, many young teenagers these days are overweight and falling into the category of obesity and it is clear why there is this problem. If your child has a weight problem and a self image problem it is very important to recognise this and to talk to them and take the right action. Getting teenage youngsters to get out and take regular exercise these days is difficult at the best of times because of the culture of computers and the fact that as a society we have encouraged our kids to stay indoors and stay safe.

If your teenage child has a self image problem, it is probably even more difficult for them to want to be seen out and about as they no doubt want to shut themselves away from being seen, particularly if there is any concerns about physical or psychological bullying or abuse. They will also perhaps be feeling disempowered and unmotivated and may well find it difficult to like or love themselves.The lonesome overweight teenage child will most likely find comfort in eating and so causes a cycle of problems that they feel unable to control.

From a therapy point of view we know that the help we provide can help people change their minds and change their lives in a positive way. Hypnotherapy can help with beating addictions and more importantly can also help people develop a new mindset to help naturally manage their weight through re-framing beliefs and attitudes and behaviours around diet and exercise in a much safer and more positive way

Whilst researching through some old course notes on free association earlier this week I was reminded of this very interesting fact. For most of his career Freud used psychoanalysis with his patients but not in hypnosis. Freud studied hypnosis in Paris and used hypnosis at the beginning of his career.

At first he was a very enthusiastic proponent of hypnosis for some time but later decided to abandon it in favour of talking therapies. Over time however he actually came to realise and suggest that combining hypnosis with free association might hasten the process because of the way the subconscious mind can accept suggestion rather more quickly than the conscious mind. In the cases of complex emotional issues many of Freud's psychoanalysis sessions were typically around 1000 hours long. That is three sessions a week for seven years! No doubt putting the affordability of the therapy out of the reach of many ordinary people.

It has always been a valid argument in hypnosis circles that change can take place far more rapidly at the subconscious level than at the conscious level where the judgmental conscious mind with all of its doubts, fears and neurosis which stem from the subconscious mind battle it out. By reprogramming the subconscious mind using hypnosis we can bring both parts of the mind into balance and harmony far more quickly than is the case in 'counselling' based talking therapies.

Combining free association with hypnosis shortens the whole process considerably so that a successful outcome may be achieved within perhaps as little six to ten sessions for the more complex emotional issues which all goes a long way to prove the efficacy of hypnosis